13/08/2023
As part of our call for systems use, we have endeavoured to visit homes with cameras, meet with systems providers like Care Protect Ltd and assess all of the safety monitoring options available for Care Providers to consider. It’s important do this when CCFTV is calling for the care sector to adopt “greater transparency”.
It is clear to CCFTV that any safety system deployed should be independent in operation and that the monitoring aspect should be undertaken by suitably qualified professionals who fully understand what constitutes abuse.
Those systems should have legal opinion support, with an accompanying bible of documents to meet the following requirements; written consent, privacy impact assessment, data protection, operational policies and randomised audit services, all with a professional duty of candour for monitors to report any viewed event that could be determined as criminal.
The goal of such systems are to protect vulnerable people, but also to share a common goal with care providers and eradicate abusers from the care sector.
Providers who have installed cameras have confirmed that systems are best introduced when all parties have been informed. So monitoring companies should be willing to provide system demonstrations for residents, staff, relatives, service commissioners and any other stakeholders prior to system use. It is important that staff see evidence based examples of how monitoring has improved the resident care experience and at times, protected staff from vexatious complaints.
Staff will know colleagues who are abusers can be targeted by such systems and removed, ensuring that the rest of the staff cohort is not tainted by the actions of one person.
It's important that providers don’t just attempt to introduce self managed systems that do not have the professional support services included as often in those scenarios, retrospective reviewing becomes the only service.
That means a resident may be already harmed before staff internally begin to review days and days of recorded footage in an attempt to assess an event that may have happened some time before reporting.
A risk also exists that footage managed internally may not be disclosed to other members of a management team if the implications are too great for a particular home.
Professional monitoring companies can install full systems and provide an affordable menu of services that can be purchased when required. Having an independent company with an ability to login and conduct a remote virtual audit at any time of day/night is of immense value to a care home business wanting to understand what is happening in their homes at any given point in time.
Care Campaign for the Vulnerable (CCFTV) will continue to urge care providers to commit to system adoption as well as calling for regulators and local authorities to make such systems mandatory as soon as possible.
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